Half full or half empty?

There are two ways of looking at this story; a charitable viewing would see the author allowing ignorant creationists to hang themselves on their own words. However, a cynical perspective would see the ever politically correct BBC giving un-opposed air time to ignorant creationists in a disingenuous and naïve article about a preposterous affront to honest people the world over.

The creationist museum in Kentucky and the associated organisation that funds it is a huge, expensive vehicle for telling lies, I wonder if the BBC would allow such biased publicity about other similarly dishonest organisations and topics, holocaust denial for example. How would the public react if an article by David Irving was published in the mainstream media without a single refutation from any expert, photographs, or Nazi document highlighting the overwhelming evidence in the affirmative?

I think the BBC was wrong to provide coverage like this, without counter argument, no mention of the evidence for evolution, no mention of the thousands of museums around the world that stand in opposition to this and no objectivity, it simply allows the creationists and their adherents to present their misguided views without challenge. Do we even know if the profits from this disgusting museum are subject to tax or is AIG considered a church and therefore exempt in the US?

Then there are the quotes from people going to the museum, admittedly they do make them sound like ignorant hicks.

In particular, we have some bloke who said "Why is Darwin buried with kings at Westminster Abbey? He's not a king." You would think that someone would do a tiny bit of research before coming up with a comment like that, clearly this twit doesn't realise that Newton, Herschel, Shakespeare, Milton, Stephenson and Lyell are also buried there (among many others), he clearly has a view of England that is based on a medieval Disney fantasy (I wonder if he even owns a passport?). Then there is the lady who says "she's not sure Darwin believed his own theory" I can confirm to her that no educated person is sure they believe that she actually said that! And then we have the retired "professor" who says "if you don't believe in Genesis, you don't believe in anything else", talk about insulting just about everyone on the face of the planet in one go, I'm sure anyone who studied under him are now reviewing their degree certificates for legal anomalies as we speak.

Seriously, aren't Americans embarrassed by such views? why aren't the American press and American comedians hounding and ridiculing these people day in and day out, is it because they are hiding behind the veil of "faith"?

One thing is for sure, from the perspective of the scientific community they are making a laughing stock of a (once?) great scientific nation.